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| United States Patent |
5,257,538
|
|
Spendell
|
November 2, 1993
|
Gas consumption measuring device
Abstract
A compact gas consumption measuring device which is flexibly insertable
into existing gas installations includes in a single compact housing, a
permanently installed flowmeter, and a pressure-control device and a
shut-off valve, which are modularly constructed in two parts.
Additionally, several spatially staggered gas admission and gas discharge
ports are provided. To this end, the housing possesses, on the front side,
slide-in openings into which one basic module each is inserted and
secured. Assigned to each basic module are a function module and a blank
module which, depending on the requirement, are insertable into the basic
module and are sealable gastight to the outside. The basic modules and the
assigned function modules are each provided with a gas intake and gas
discharge wells and are connected to each other in such a way that they
are connected in series to the flowmeter as well as to the connecting
ports for gas admission and for gas exhaust.
| Inventors:
|
Spendell; Karl D. (Nuremberg, DE)
|
| Assignee:
|
Siemens Aktiengesellschaft (Munich, DE)
|
| Appl. No.:
|
939959 |
| Filed:
|
September 4, 1992 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
| Apr 12, 1989[DE] | 89312637[U] |
| Current U.S. Class: |
73/198; 73/273 |
| Intern'l Class: |
G01F 015/00 |
| Field of Search: |
73/195,198,199,201,273
|
References Cited
U.S. Patent Documents
| 3894432 | Jul., 1975 | Coughlin | 73/201.
|
| 4174733 | Nov., 1979 | Eidsmore et al. | 73/199.
|
| 4782697 | Nov., 1988 | Williams, III | 73/861.
|
| 5003810 | Apr., 1991 | Jepson et al. | 73/195.
|
| Foreign Patent Documents |
| 991441 | Jun., 1970 | CA.
| |
| 0243294 | Oct., 1987 | EP.
| |
| 0303255 | Aug., 1988 | EP.
| |
| 612278 | Apr., 1935 | DE2.
| |
| 803492 | Jul., 1949 | DE.
| |
| 1698463 | Dec., 1970 | DE.
| |
| 2215758 | Mar., 1988 | GB.
| |
Primary Examiner: Goldstein;Herbert
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Kenyon & Kenyon
Parent Case Text
This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 07/624,072,
filed on Dec. 4, 1990, now abandoned.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A system for assembly into a gas consumption measuring device
comprising:
a) a slide valve function module for shutting off gas flow;
b) a slide valve blank module;
c) a pressure-control function module for controlling gas flow pressure;
d) a pressure-control blank module;
e) a housing, said housing defining a flow path, and including a front side
having a first opening and a second opening, said first and second
openings dividing said flow path into a first segment, a second segment,
and a third segment;
f) a housing gas admission port defining a first end of said first segment
of said flow path;
g) a housing gas exhaust port defining a second end of said third segment
of said flow path;
h) a flowmeter permanently installed in said housing at a point in said
flow path;
i) a slide valve basic module being releasably inserted in said first
opening, having an inlet and an outlet defining a second flow path which
couples a second end of said first segment and a first end of said second
segment of said flow path, and defining a void which accommodates one of
said slide valve function module and said slide valve blank module; and
j) a pressure-control basic module being releasably inserted in said second
opening, having an inlet and an outlet defining a third flow path which
couples a second end of said second segment and a first end of said third
segment of said flow path, and defining a void which accommodates one of
said pressure-control function module and said pressure-control blank
module,
whereby said system is configured as a gas consumption measuring device
having any one of:
i) said slide valve functional module accommodated in said slide valve
basic module and said pressure control functional module accommodated in
said pressure control basic module;
ii) said slide valve functional module accommodated in said slide valve
basic module and said pressure control blank module accommodated in said
pressure control basic module;
iii) said slide valve blank module accommodated in said slide valve basic
module and said pressure control functional module accommodated in said
pressure control basic module; and
iv) said slide valve blank module accommodated in said slide valve basic
module and said pressure control blank module accommodated in said
pressure control basic module.
2. The gas consumption measuring device of claim 1, further comprising a
replaceable battery arranged in said housing and wherein said flowmeter is
an ultrasonic flowmeter and said replaceable battery energizes said
flowmeter.
3. The gas consumption measuring device of claim 2, wherein said housing
comprises right-angled wall elements, which are provided with a first
group of connecting ports for gas admission and a second group of
connecting ports for gas exhaust, wherein ports of the two groups are
connected to one another in a gas conducting manner and are sealable
gas-tight except for the ports being used at the time.
4. The gas consumption measuring device of claim 3, wherein said inlets and
said outlets of the basic modules lie on two different planes of cross
section and a ring seal is arranged between the two planes of cross
section for each of the basic modules.
5. The gas consumption measuring device of claim 2, wherein said inlets and
said outlets of the basic modules lie on two different planes of cross
section and a ring seal is arranged between the two planes of cross
section for each of the basic modules,
6. The gas consumption measuring device of claim 1, wherein said housing
comprises right-angled wall elements, which are provided with a first
group of connecting ports for gas admission and a second group of
connecting ports for gas exhaust, wherein ports of the two groups are
connected to one another in a gas conducting manner and are sealable
gas-tight except for the ports being used at the time.
7. The gas consumption measuring device of claim 6, wherein said inlets and
said outlets of the basic modules lie on two different planes of cross
section and a ring seal is arranged between the two planes of cross
section for each of the basic modules.
8. The gas consumption measuring device of claim 1, wherein said inlets and
said outlets of the basic modules lie on two different planes of cross
section and a ring seal is arranged between the two planes of cross
section for each of the basic modules.
9. A system kit for assembly into a gas consumption measuring device
comprising:
a) a slide valve function module for shutting off gas flow;
b) a slide valve blank module;
c) a pressure-control function module for controlling gas flow pressure;
d) a pressure-control blank module;
e) a housing, said housing defining a flow path, and including a front side
having a first opening and a second opening, said first and second
openings dividing said flow path into a first segment, a second segment,
and a third segment;
f) a housing gas admission port defining a first end of said first segment
of said flow path;
g) a housing gas exhaust port defining a second end of said third segment
of said flow path;
h) a flowmeter permanently installed in said housing at a point in said
flow path;
i) a slide valve basic module
for releasable insertion into said first opening,
having an inlet and an outlet which, when inserted into said first opening,
define a second flow path which couples a second end of said first segment
and a first end of said second segment of said flow path, and
defining a void which may accommodate one of said slide valve function
module and said slide valve blank module; and p1 j) a pressure-control
basic module
for releasable insertion into said second opening,
having an inlet and an outlet which, when inserted into said second
opening, define a third flow path which couples a second end of said
second segment and a first end of said third segment of said flow path,
and
defining a void which may accommodate one of said pressure-control function
module and said pressure-control blank module.
10. The gas consumption measuring device of claim 9, further comprising a
replaceable battery arranged in said housing and wherein said flowmeter is
an ultrasonic flowmeter and said replaceable battery energizes said
flowmeter.
11. The gas consumption measuring device of claim 10, wherein said housing
comprises right-angled wall elements, which are provided with a first
group of connecting ports for gas admission and a second group of
connecting ports for gas exhaust, wherein ports of the two groups are
connected to one another in a gas conducting manner and are sealable
gas-tight except for the ports being used at the time.
12. The gas consumption measuring device of claim 11, wherein said inlets
and said outlets of the basic modules lie on two different planes of cross
section and a ring seal is arranged between the two planes of cross
section for each of the basic modules.
13. The gas consumption measuring device of claim 10, wherein said inlets
and said outlets of the basic modules lie on two different planes of cross
section and a ring seal is arranged between the two planes of cross
section for each of the basic modules.
14. The gas consumption measuring device of claim 9, wherein said housing
comprises right-angled wall elements, which are provided with a first
group of connecting ports for gas admission and a second group of
connecting ports for gas exhaust, wherein ports of the two groups are
connected to one another in a gas conduction manner and are sealable
gas-tight except for the ports being used at the time.
15. The gas consumption measuring device of claim 14, wherein said inlets
and said outlets of the basic modules lie on two different planes of cross
section and a ring seal is arranged between the two planes of cross
section for each of the basic modules.
16. The gas consumption measuring device of claim 9, wherein said inlets
and said outlets of the basic modules lie on two different planes of cross
section and a ring seal is arranged between the two planes of cross
section for each of the basic modules.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a gas consumption measuring device and
more particularly to a modular design for such a device.
Gas consumption measuring devices with a permanently installed flow meter
usually consist of a reservoir, sealed gastight, an admission pipe, an
exhaust pipe, and a flowmeter with an indicating device. A shut-off valve
is included in the supply line leading to the measuring device, so that,
gas supply to the device can be cut off using the shut-off valve, and if
necessary. If desired, the supply line can be fitted with a
pressure-control device in addition to the shut-off valve.
German Patent 803 492 discloses a secondary-counter device for measuring
gas consumption, including a flowmeter combined with a shut-off valve to
form a single unit.
Furthermore, a gas consumption meter is known from the German Printed
Patent 16 98 463. In this example, a flowmeter is accommodated, along with
a pressure-control device, in a mutual housing.
These two known devices have a common disadvantage. Each requires extensive
installation work and associated expenses to install them into an existing
gas installation. Thus, for example, to desire installing a flowmeter and
a pressure-control device at an existing gas installation that only has a
shut-off valve is not uncommon. To this end, either the installation is
fitted with the two elements, each one by itself, or a combination
configuration like that disclosed in the German Printed Patent 16 98 463
is used. A similar problem arises where an existing installation has a
pressure-control device and installing a flowmeter having an associated
shut-off valve is desired. In both instances, either the expenditure for
assembly is relatively high, or special equipment combinations, which are
usually costly, must be made available.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention overcomes the problems of these prior art systems,
clearly reducing the installation expenditure required to modify gas
installations in comparison with prior modification or installation
methods. Simultaneously the present invention provides a flexible uniform
device, adaptable to existing installations and therefore inexpensive, The
flexible uniform device is adaptable to the special requirements for a
given installation with little manipulation.
The present invention provides a gas consumption measuring device including
a housing, a housing gas admission port and a housing gas exhaust port. A
flowmeter is permanently installed in the housing. The housing has first
and second slide-in openings on the front side of the housing. A slide
valve basic module is inserted in the first slide-in opening and is
releasably secured to the housing. A pressure-control device basic module
is inserted in the second slide-in opening and is releasably secured to
the housing. A slide valve function module is detachably inserted in the
slide valve basic module. A pressure-control device function module is
detachably inserted in the pressure-control device basic module. Each of
the function modules have a gas admission port and a gas exhaust port.
Together the slide valve basic module and the slide valve function module
constitute a shut-off valve. Together the pressure-control device basic
module and the pressure-control device function module constitute a
pressure-control device. The shut-off valve and the pressure-control
device are connected in series, in a gas conducting manner, to each other
and to the housing gas admission port and the housing gas exhaust ports.
Each of the function modules is replaceable with a respective blank module
insertable into the respective basic module to be gas tight to the outside
of the housing. This new configuration provides that the components, still
required in addition to the flowmeter, such as a shut-off valve and
pressure-control device, can be accommodated compactly in a mutual
housing. At the same time, the modular construction of these components
permits the total configuration to be flexibly adapted to prevailing local
conditions while expending minimal amounts of energy and effort. Moreover,
in spite of its functional flexibility, the measuring device can be
accommodated in a uniform, compact housing. Therefore, exactly to planning
the installation work in advance and carry the installation work out with
a minimum degree of complexity is possible, since the space required for
the entire module is always constant. Also, the space required to stock
spare parts for the various elements is minimized.
Also, the flexibility provided by the present invention permits easy
adaptation to the specific requirements of a given gas installation at the
installation with little manipulation and reduced need for prior plans for
overall design changes.
In a further development of the present invention, a flowmeter is an
ultrasonic flowmeter powered by a replaceable battery. The battery is also
arranged in the housing. A flowmeter based on the ultrasonic delay time
principle is generally known, for instance from the EP-A-0 303 255. This
type of ultrasonic flowmeter is very compact and can be easily combined
with the other components in a single housing, in a space-saving manner.
The housing of the device may include a plurality of right-angled wall
elements provided with a group of connecting ports for gas admission and a
second group of connecting ports for gas exhaust. The groups are connected
by gas conductors in the housing and ports other than those in use are
sealably gastight. Such a measuring device can be inserted into an
existing pipe run with a minimum amount of extra work for installation.
The gas admission and gas exhaust or discharge ports can lie on different
planes of a housings cross section. Furthermore, a ring seal can be
arranged between the two planes of cross section. This configuration
prevents the gas inside the module from to directly attaining the gas
exhaust port from the gas intake port by way of the wall clearance.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 illustrates a spatial general view of modularly constructed gas
consumption measuring device according to an embodiment of the present
invention.
FIG. 2 illustrates a basic configuration of a modularly constructed
shut-off valve in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 illustrates a blank module used in place of the shut-off valve of
FIG. 2.
FIG. 4 illustrates a modularly constructed gas pressure-control device in
accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 5 illustrates a blank module used in place of the gas pressure-control
device of FIG. 4.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
A modularly constructed gas consumption measuring device according to the
present invention is depicted in FIG. 1. The device possesses a housing 1,
provided with a first frontal slide-in opening 2 for mounting a shut-off
valve, a second frontal slide-in opening 3 for mounting a gas
pressure-control device, and a third frontal slide-in opening 4 for
accommodating an electrical power source such as a current source. In
addition, the housing 1 has a first sealable gas admission port 6 and a
first sealable gas exhaust port 7 on its top side 5. A second sealable gas
admission port 8 on the bottom side 9 of the housing 1 leads to the
outside of the housing 1 and is connected, by way of a first connecting
pipe 10, to the first gas admission port 6. A second sealable gas exhaust
port 11 leads through a side wall 12 of the housing to the outside of
housing 1. The second gas exhaust port 11 is connected to the first gas
exhaust port 7 via an angular connecting pipe 13. Of course, configuring
additional interconnected gas admission and gas exhaust ports is also
possible if desired. In that instance, sealing the unused ports gastight
and lead-sealing them with the help of screw caps 14, 15 would be
appropriate. The unsealed ports 8 and 11 can be connected to a gas supply
line, and to the outgoing gas line, respectively, in a manner not
illustrated.
Inside the housing 1, an ultrasonic flowmeter 6 is configured diagonally on
a rear side of an housing. It is connected, on the intake side, via a
second connecting pipe 17 to a basic module 18 of a pressure-control
device and on an exhaust side to the angular connecting pipe 13 of the gas
discharge ports 7, 11. The ultrasonic flowmeter 16 possesses two
ultrasonic measuring sensors, 19 and 20, configured at the ends of a
measuring section of the flowmeter. The measuring sensors are connected
via connecting lines 21, 22 to an electronic evaluation circuit 23. The
evaluation of circuit 23 is connected to a display 24 to indicate the gas
quantity consumed at the installation. The basic module 18 of the
pressure-control device is connected in a gas-conducting manner via a
third connecting pipe 27 to the basic module 25 of the shut-off valve. The
basic module 25 of the shut-off valve is connected via a fourth connecting
pipe 26 to the first connecting pipe 10. The electronic evaluation circuit
23 is powered by a battery 28 configured in the third frontal slide-in
opening 4.
FIG. 2 illustrates a longitudinal section of the first frontal slide-in
opening 2 with the slide valve basic module 25 inserted in the opening and
a slide valve function module 32 inserted in the slide valve basic module
25. The slide valve basic module 25 is a cup-shaped hollow cylinder,
provided with a first gas intake well 29 and a first gas discharge well 30
in different horizontal planes. A first O-ring seal 31 is configured
between the two planes. This O-ring seal 3 prevents a gas-conducting
creeping connection when the slide valve function module 32 is inserted
between the gas intake well 29 and the gas discharge well 30. The fourth
connecting pipe 26 of FIG. 1 is set gas-tight with the first gas intake
well 29 and the fourth connecting pipe 27 of FIG. 1 is set gas-tight with
the first gas discharge well 30. With the help of a bayonet catch 33, the
slide valve function module 32 is detachably secured in the slide valve
basic module 25. The function of the slide valve function module 32 is
known and therefore does not require any further classification. A second
O-ring seal 34 between the first gas intake well 29 and the top edge of
the shut off valve basic module provides for the gas sealing action to the
outside.
FIG. 3 illustrates an installation configuration where the slide valve
function module 32 is not needed. The slide valve function module is not
required when an external slide valve is already available for use. Here,
a slide valve blank module 35 of the same geometric measurement and the
same outer form, as well as the same gas intake and gas discharge wells
and first and second O-ring seals 31, 34 configured in the same horizontal
planes, and finally with the same bayonet catch 33 as slide valve function
module 32, can be inserted in and secured to the slide valve basic module
25 in place of the slide valve function module 32. As a result, the gas
consumption measuring device can be used with or without a slide valve
function module, since it can be replaced, by a considerably less
expensive blank module 35. Should the installation be modernized,
exchanging the blank module 35 for a function module 32 as illustrated in
FIG. 2 is always possible.
The same basic concept applies to the pressure-control device function
module 36 depicted in FIG. 4. Such a pressure-control device is known in
principle. It consists of a membrane 37, which works against a spring 38
and acts, by way of an actuating mechanism 39, upon a turning lever 40.
The turning lever 40 regulates via a valve 41 the gas intake depending
upon the pressure prevailing in the pressure chamber 42. The
pressure-control device function module 36 is mounted and supported in the
pressure-control-device basic module 17 with the help of a bayonet catch
33 in the same way as the slide valve function module 32 is mounted in the
slide valve basic module 25 as described above. The pressure-control
device basic module 17 has a second gas intake well 43 and a second gas
discharge well 44. Both wells lie in different horizontal planes and are
separated in a gas tight manner from each other by means of a third O-ring
seal 45. A fourth O-ring seal 46 provides the gas sealing action to the
outside. If another pressure-control device is already present in an
existing gas installation, then in this case as well, as the case of the
slide valve function module, already described, a pressure-control device
blank module 48 can be inserted in place of the pressure-control-device
function module 36. The blank module 48 has the same geometric measurement
as the pressure-control-device function module 36 and can be introduced in
and secured to the pressure-control-device basic module 18 in the same
manner.
Since connecting the gas lines to the gas admission and gas exhaust ports
configured in different directions, of which the ones not being used can
be closed in a simple manner with the help of screw caps, and since
adapting to different gas installations is possible by inserting function
modules or blank modules may be configured in a flexible manner, the
measuring device is easily adjustable to the local conditions by way of
simple means.
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